Can-demonium!

The moment many fans of St. Boniface Craft Brewing have been waiting for is finally here. No longer is a growler necessary to get beer to go. Six-packs of Libation Double India Pale Ale (IPA) and Paideia Pale Ale went on sale Saturday, Dec. 13, and I got my hands on one of the first collections of cans to leave the building.

As usual, the Ephrata brewery was packed this past weekend and six packs were selling quickly. Libation, which scores an 86 on Beer Advocate, is one of St. Boniface’s most popular beers. The American style IPA is floral and tangy with a big 8.5 percent alcohol by volume (ABV). It is a beer for hop lovers and those who enjoy refreshing, full-flavored beers. Paideia is one of my personal favorites; the pale ale carries a reasonable 5 percent ABV and scores an 87 on Beer Advocate. I like the thick head this beer delivers. Brewed in the English style of pale ales, Paideia has a solid maltiness spiked with a bouquet of flowery hops. St. Boniface canned 180 cases of each beer and will continue to use its supply of aluminum cans while gathering information for future demand.

“Those are our best sellers,” said co-owner Mike Price when I asked him about canning Paideia and Libation. “We are going to be canning on a consistent basis and we’ll just have to see how sales go between draft and cans.”

It may sound steep, but St. Boniface six-packs are $12. At $2 per 12-ounce can of craft beer, that’s a good price considering a 16-ounce pint (Paideia) or 12-ounce goblet (Libation) from the tap costs $4. (Beers with a higher alcohol content — more than 6 percent ABV — are served in 12-ounce form at St. Boniface; anything with a smaller ABV is served in a pint glass.) Due to legal requirements, six-packs are limited to two per person in the tasting room. But Price said starting this Saturday the brewery itself will be open from 10 a.m. to noon for tours of the newly expanded facility and for case sales.

Eventually Price would like to can the brewery’s 3 Pound IPA and Hegemony stout, but that is a little while down the road. They also have the option to bottle certain styles, but for now St. Boniface is all about cans. Beer cans are like screw-top wine bottles; they’ve been weighed with unnecessary prejudice for years. The beer can is becoming more popular than ever as customers recognize the advantages they have over bottles in what Bon Appetite magazine called a “beer vector renaissance.” No harmful light gets into a can (which can physically change the beer). Cans are easily transported and don’t break if you drop them. Cans chill faster and stay colder longer. Etc. etc.

“There’s definitely a huge market for cans in bottle shops and bars,” said Price. Many bars around the country (including Lancaster’s redesigned Horse Inn) appeal to a specific clientele by offering only canned beer. The revolution will not be televised; it will be canned.

On that note, as it says on the can of Paideia in front of me, “Nicht lang schnacken, kopf in nacken!” Or, “Stop talking, start drinking!” So, I will.

Paideia delivers a thick head. Brewed in the English style of paleales, it has a solid maltiness spiked with a bouquet of floweryhops.